Thank you again for the review, Mind Where Odd Thoughts Drift! Thanks for catching that about Donphan, I just fixed it ^^ And I'm VERY impressed that someone was able to figure out the code, so kudos to you for that! XD Also thanks to Karner, and to answer your question, AppleScript is the computer code for Macs. I sorta stole it for story purposes, since I know nothing about how to code computers beyond that XD; Thanks so much to both of you, I'm really thrilled that someone likes what I'm doing here, so hopefully I don't disappoint with this chapter! :D

The flow of knowledge ceased, leaving me lightheaded at best. I was delirious with all I had absorbed, but it was no worse than the scans I'd experienced before. Just unnatural.

Beside me, the Cyndaquil I'd identified as Chris was stumbling blindly across the plain white table. I caught her gruffly, dragging her by the scruff and plopping her down in front of me while I waited for the far-off look to fade from her eyes. "We have to go," I growled. "Now."

I could tell she felt the pull of the mission too, and without a doubt knew that I was her partner, but my appearance made her even flightier than she already had been. I guess after such confusion, it's less than reassuring to find a Pokémech monstrosity snarling in your face. She put on a brave face though, nodding quietly and staring up at the man who had given us our quest.

"I wish both of you the best of luck," he said with a nervous smile that told me he didn't think we'd be coming back at all. He patted Chris on the head and gave me a confident nod. I dipped my head in return, then leaped from the table without waiting to see if Chris was following behind. She was, scrambling clumsily to follow. I wondered briefly why I had been given such an inadequate partner, but I trusted this man enough to know that he had his reasons.

"Chris, come on," I snarled again as the klutzy Cyndaquil scurried behind. I didn't need a scan to pick up the tremble in her small frame at the sound of my voice. This was going to be a long journey.

The man, confident in our understanding of our mission, swiped his ID card through a slot in the wall, and the steel doors parted. I leaped through the wreckage outside, my scanner informing me that a struggle, Luxray and Manectric versus Arcanine, Tauros and Donphan, had taken place just an hour or so before. The trio had clearly come out victorious, and that meant my new partner and I were clear. Chris was moving more quickly now, racing through the mess of twisted metal and shattered black tile on all fours. While she had regarded me as an enemy, now she kept close, considering me the only familiar -- and therefore the only safe -- Pokémech around.

We rushed through the corridors, Chris nearly leaping out of her skin at every unexpected footfall, and me forcing her to keep pace.

There was no way we'd make it out otherwise.

We made it out the gates without too much trouble. There were cameras, but the scientists were distracted by the rampaging Pokémech. And I doubted they'd implanted us with tracking devices- according to Russell's data, we'd been locked away without the intention of ever coming out. We were considered failures. It made my blood boil.

I fought to control my emotions and analyze the city around me. It was dark, but the Roads were running. The odd person could still be seen riding along it. Pokémech were just beginning their patrol, making sure everyone arrived at home before curfew. I wondered how long it would be before they too rebelled. Or maybe they already had, and were simply biding their time. The guards were sleek, flawless creatures, almost identical to the Pokémon in whose image they were made, with the exception of modifications for superiority. We, on the other hand, were receiving weird glances. I swore under my breath, and Chris looked up, startled. "What?"

"We stick out like a couple of Frankensteins!" I hissed. Clearly, we wouldn't blend in at all here on the ground. I was hoping that on the pathways we'd be going fast enough to escape notice, but the instant Chris stepped from solid ground to the speeding Road, she fell over and then flattened herself onto the track, terrified. I had to run after her and grab her by the scruff before it intersected with another and I lost her for good in the maze of paths. I put her down beside me, where she lay trembling for a while, but we had to move on. I spoke again, this time a little more softly. "Chris, we have to get on the rooftops. There aren't any humans up there."

She looked a little more steady, and nodded determinedly. "Alright, let's do it." I realized it was the first time I'd heard her speak. A girlish voice, which was of course what I'd expected. But so young. It occurred to me that I'd been treating her like a stronger, faster Pokémon, not taking her age into account at all. I promised myself I'd be a little gentler from now on.

I wanted to fly through the alleys in that confident way an Umbreon has by nature, but I knew Chris wouldn't be able to keep up. So instead I used my knowledge of city life and darkness to guide her as best I could. Soon we found a derelict, red-roofed building, back from the era of the Pokémon. I wondered why it hadn't been torn down like all the other relics of the past, but I certainly wasn't complaining about the easy footholds it provided. We clambered up to the roof without too much difficulty, then I told Chris to get on my back. I knew she couldn't make the jump on her own.

There was an instant where I doubted myself. It was the first time I'd made a roof leap since my operation -- I'd been locked up soon after -- and if the data feed broke my concentration at that key moment, we'd both fall and be killed. But to an Umbreon, this is is part of life. If you can't handle life in the city, you may as well be dead anyway.

So I bunched my muscles under me and leaped. We made it to the second rooftop. Soon my confidence had grown and we were flying over at a speed that earned squeaks of terror or excitement -- I couldn't tell which -- from my little passenger.

I stopped briefly to see where our rooftops had landed us. We were at the top of a reasonably tall building, and city stretched out below us for miles around. A chaotic mix of paths, people and Pokémech. Plenty of places for us to run to in the event of danger. But they knew this city far better than we did

And there was no where to hide.